Ensuring safe blood supply: A 2-year retrospective study on seropositivity of transfusion-transmitted infections among blood donors

Abstract

Background: The use of unscreened blood exposes the patient to many transfusion-transmitted infections (TTIs) including hepatitis B and C viruses, human immunodeficiency virus (HIV), malaria and syphilis, among others. Thus, blood transfusion demands for meticulous pre-transfusion testing and screening. Methods: In this retrospective study carried out from September 2019 to September 2021, 5 mandatory screening tests for TTIs, namely, anti-HIV 1 and 2, anti-hepatitis C virus antibodies, hepatitis surface antigen (HBsAg), serological testing for syphilis and malarial parasite antigen detection were performed. Results: From 2019 September to 2021 September, 2576 blood donations (n = 2474; 96% males) were studied. Of these, 529 (20.5%) were from voluntary donors (VD) and 2047 (79.5%) from replacement donors (RD). Thirty-four (1.3%) of the total 2576 blood donors tested positive for one of the TTIs, including 6 (17.6%) VD and 28 (82.4%) RD. Conclusions: Strict selection of blood donors is mandatory and the need to increase voluntary blood donations can ensure safe blood supply and reducing the occurrence of TTI.

Keywords

• pre-transfusion testing
• safe blood supply
• transfusion transmitted infections